The 21 Best Documentaries on YouTube That You Can Watch Right Now

• Channel: VICE
• Views: 2.4 Million
• Likes: 36K
• Directed by: Alex Craig, Jason Ford, and David Galloway
• Runtime: 43:55
• IMDB Rating: 8.1/10
• Watch if you Like: Departure

If you're someone who's heavily into traveling, national monuments, filming locations, etc., then VICE's "Why Did American Abandon Route 66?" episode as part of their Abandoned series is a super interesting watch. The episode is hosted by professional skateboarder Rick McCrank and co-pilot Frank Gerwer as they personally embark on a journey to find out what's left of the legendary pipeline. The episode also highlights the impact of the mudslides on Route 66, and how they played a major role in shutting in down. Once again, a very good watch for those interested in this type of stuff.

• Channel: Nipsey Hussle
• Views: 1.3 Million
• Likes: 48K
• Directed by: Nipsey Hussle and Samiel Asghedom
• Runtime: 35:22
• IMDB Rating: N/A
• Watch if you Like: Hip hop culture

Fans of the late Nipsey Hussle can get an inside look behind the cannabis business the rapper was developing alongside his brother Samiel Asghedom in The Marathon (Cultivation), which was released in May 2022 ahead of the opening of second Marathon Clothing Store, which was also spearheaded by Asghedom. The film documents the development of their Marathon OG Cannabis, taking you through the ins and outs of the project. Another great way to commemorate Nipsey through something he was very passionate about.

• Channel: Gnostic Informant TV
• Views: 246K
• Likes: 5.9K
• Directed by: N/A
• Runtime: 11:35:44
• IMDB Rating: N/A
• Watch if you Like: One of Us

This is moreso a docu-series as opposed to being a full blown documentary, so you're probably going to need at least a few days to watch it. In OLDEST RELIGIONS: the Entire History, Gnostic Informant TV breaks down the world's oldest religions one by one from nature worship and Paganism, all the way down to the Syncretic Roman Imperial Cult and Judeo-Christian and Islamic Monotheistic Religions. Even if you don't particularly have a religion you identify with (or you already do), this is still an informative watch because it gives you a chance to learn more about the countries/cultures/regions associated with each respective religion.

• Channel: PBS
• Views: 2.5 Million
• Likes: 22K
• Directed by: Doug Hamilton
• Runtime: 53:35
• IMDB Rating: 7.8/10
• Watch if you Like: The Strange Attraction of Mona Lisa

Art and history lovers, this is the documentary for you. Decoding da Vinci highlights the science behind many of Leonardo da Vinci's masterpieces, which includes the Mona Lisa, and the mystery surrounding her style. We scrolled through the comments just to make sure we were suggesting an interesting documentary for you guys, and one of the comments said "I am impressed with the scientific methods and engineering tools used to study the painting by the talented Leonardo, who was an engineer, a scientist , and an artist." Sounds like it's a good one folks.

• Channel: Best Documentary
• Views: 1.9 Million
• Likes: 11K
• Directed by: N/A
• Runtime: 47:10
• IMDB Rating: N/A
• Watch if you Like: Career documentaries

If you hate your job and think it's the worst in the world, you might want to take a look at The Worst Jobs in the World by Best Documentary, as it's bound to make you leave with a greater appreciation for the things you do have—even if it's not exactly the best situation to be in at the moment. We'll let you watch and determine what you think on your own as many who have watched the doc came out on the other side with a different mentality.

• Channel: National Geographic
• Views: 6.7 Million
• Likes: 23K
• Directed by: N/A
• Runtime: 1:32:49
• IMDB Rating: 7.6/10
• Watch if you Like: Hostile Planet

This National Geographic television special from 2018 takes an in-depth look at the animals who fight for survival in the unpredictable Okavango Delta in Botswana, which was transformed by a miracle flood from a desert into a water wonderland. The program was created by Brad Bestelink, narrated by Angela Bassett, and earned two Emmy Award nominations in 2019.

• Channel: Biography
• Views: 16K
• Likes: 422
• Directed by: N/A
• Runtime: 45:03
• IMDB Rating: N/A
• Watch if you Like: Food, Inc

The Biography Channel just released a relatively new documentary on to their channel highlighting the lives and careers of Ben & Jerry co-founder Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield. The doc explores how Ben & Jerry's Homemade ice cream has been able to build an excellent reputation amongst foodies and ice cream lovers, the early makings of which started in 1978 in Burlington, Vermont. This is a great doc to check out if you want to learn more about the history of one of the world's most beloved ice creams.

• Channel: Diverse Mentality
• Views: 274K
• Likes: 8.3K
• Directed by: N/A
• Runtime: 2:03:54
• IMDB Rating: N/A
• Watch if you Like: Get Rich or Die Tryin’

50 Cent's classic debut album Get Rich or Die Tryin’ celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, and Diverse Mentality is celebrating the monumental occasion by exploring the makings of the album. How 50 Cent Got Rich And Nearly Died Tryin' reflects on the album's hit singles and impact, along with offering rare facts and behind the scenes of footage. A good doc if you like hip-hop and are feeling nostalgic.

• Channel: UNIDENTIFIED
• Views: 49K
• Likes: 1.2K
• Directed by: Jeremy Kenyon, Lockyer Corbell
• Runtime: 1:07:41
• IMDB Rating: 3.7/10
• Watch if you Like: The First Wave

Admittedly, Patient Seventeen didn't get the greatest reviews at the time of its release in 2017, but six years later it might be worth a revisit. In short, there's a surgeon who claims to have removed highly advance implants, microchips imbedded by aliens, non-humans monitoring our earth. What follows is an exploration into the world of abductions, scalar wave transmissions, and a program to study or manipulate the human race. Quite interesting if the supernatural is something that interests you, but we could also understand if you want to skip this one.

• Channel: FRONTLINE PBS
• Views: 11 Million
• Likes: 80K
• Directed by: James Jacoby
• Runtime: 1:53:17
• IMDB Rating: 7.9/10
• Watch if you Like: Financial documentaries

Age of Easy Money may be a little too close to comfort depending on what you've experienced, but it's a highly informative watch that goes into the 2008 recession, inflation issues, the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, how the U.S. Economy got to where it's currently at in the first place, the mistakes that have been made along the way, the previous mistakes that weren't learned from, and everything in-between.

• Channel: 48 Hours
• Views: 1.2 Million
• Likes: 17K
• Directed by: N/A
• Runtime: 41:14
• IMDB Rating: 7.7/10
• Watch if you Like: 48 Hours and Dateline

Crime documentaries are a tough watch for a lot of people (to the point where they can't watch), but there is a certain sector of the community highly interested in them. One of the latest episodes of 48 Hours is "A Man With a Past," which chronicles a young woman being reported missing after her vehicle is found engulfed in flames. The person of interest in her disappearance has a disturbing past where he apparently murdered his parents, and the doc takes a look at the investigation.

• Channel: YouTube Originals
• Views: N/A
• Likes: N/A
• Directed by: Aaron Kunkel
• Runtime: 1:39:23
• IMDB Rating: 7.2/10
• Watch if you Like: Music documentaries and biopics

Famed boy band impresario Lou Pearlman is the mastermind behind popular boy bands such as *NYSNC, The Backstreet Boys, and more. As great as his music resume is, however, there are some dark spots as he was also a part of one of the largest Ponzi schemes in American history. The Boy Band Con: The Lou Pearlman Story covers Lou Pearlman's life, career, and legal troubles, and features Lance Bass and JC Chasez of *NYSNC, AJ McClean of The Backstreet Boys, and more.

• Channel: FRONTLINE PBS
• Views: 1.4 Million
• Likes: 17K
• Directed by: Michael Kirk
• Runtime: 1:25:05
• IMDB Rating: 8.3/10
• Watch if you Like: The Man Who Predicted 9/11

The 2002 PBS documentary The Man Who Knew is available to be watched on YouTube. The doc centers around Agent John O'Neill, who previously knew of Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda, the events of which caused him to separate from the FBI. Agent O'Neill was hired as World Trade Center security director just a few weeks before 9/11, and was killed during the attacks.

• Channel: History
• Views: 796K
• Likes: 6.6K
• Directed by: N/A
• Runtime: 1:30:23
• IMDB Rating: N/A
• Watch if you Like: History's Greatest Mysteries

An episode of the History Channel's Digging for the Truth, the "Sunken Artifacts from Atlantis Recovered" goes into just that—the sunken artifacts that have apparently been recovered from Atlantis. We scoured through the comments again, and this one was our favorite: "There is no doubt that Atlantis existed regardless of whether we can find the proof of it remains to be seen - finding the evidence after so may thousands of years may require technology yet to be invented." Seems like the debate surrounding Atlantis continues.

• Channel: YouTube Originals
• Views: 7 Million
• Likes: 82K
• Directed by: Chris Perkel
• Runtime: 1:43:37
• IMDB Rating: 7.2/10
• Watch if you Like: FYRE: The Greatest Party That Never Happened

While Coachella didn't really start popping off until the late 2000s/early 2010s, the event itself has been around for over twenty years. Coachella: 20 Years In The Desert celebrates its 20th anniversary (which occurred in 2020) by looking back on twenty years of performances, artists and the behind-the-scenes stories that shaped the music festival.

• Channel: Get.factual
• Views: 1.1 Million
• Likes: 10K
• Directed by: N/A
• Runtime: 51:58
• IMDB Rating: N/A
• Watch if you Like: Learning about unknown history

Camp Century - The Hidden City Beneath the Ice investigates the U.S. Army building the first tunnel settlement beneath the ice of Greenland whilst also looking at the consequences of the city’s tons of nuclear waste that were left behind and are now slowly emerging from the melting ice. Another fascinating watch about the past and what may be awaiting us in the future.

• Channel: YouTube Originals
• Views: 2.8 Million
• Likes: 5.5K
• Directed by: Marc Levin
• Runtime: 1:41:35
• IMDB Rating: N/A
• Watch if you Like: The Last Dance

If you want an inside look at LeBron James' I Promise school in Akron, Ohio, then you should definitely watch I PROMISE, which is available via YouTube Originals. The documentary details the the day-to-day trials, tribulations and triumphs of students and families growing up in Akron, while also actively highlighting the stories of resilience, and what the kids are learning day in and day out. I PROMISE was produced by LeBron James and Maverick Carter.

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• Channel: Coda Records
• Views: 384,059
• Likes: 6.1K
• Directed by: N/A
• Runtime: 1:04:28
• IMDB Rating: N/A
• Watch if you Like: Music documentaries

Fan of Nirvana and want to see performance footage from concerts and shows, in-depth interviews with Kurt Cobain's closest relatives and friends, and a general look at how the band became the most influential of the 1990s and one of the most influential of all-time period? Check out Nirvana – Behind the Music.

• Channel: NOVA PBS
• Views: 9.7 Million
• Likes: 89K
• Directed by: Nick Tanner, Brice Habeger
• Runtime: 53:27
• IMDB Rating: 8/10
• Watch if you Like: The intersection of history and environmental science

Arctic Sinkholes is an investigation of the explosions in Siberia and other evidence that potentially showcases that thawing permafrost in the Arctic is releasing vast amounts of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, which in turn is threatening our climate. This is actually a scary realization of the damage that has been done to our climate, and what we could potentially be facing in the future.

• Channel: National Geographic
• Views: 4.1 Million
• Likes: 31K
• Directed by: Sophie Elwin-Harris
• Runtime: 47:22
• IMDB Rating: 8/10
• Watch if you Like: Treasures of Ancient Egypt

Want to know what the waters of Egypt hold and their some fascinating historical secrets? Want to know some of the mysteries surrounding these same water of Egypt? Are you obsessed with Egypt as a whole? Then Egypt's Lost Wonders "Drain the Oceans" is the perfect documentary for you.

• Channel: Paris Hilton
• Views: 76 Million
• Likes: 801K
• Directed by: Alexandra Dean
• Runtime: 1:45:12
• IMDB Rating: N/A
• Watch if you Like: Fashion and entertainment

If you thought you knew Paris Hilton, watching The Real Story of Paris Hilton will show you that you didn't. Directed by Alexandra Dean, this doc uncovers the untold true story that shaped the woman, and the iconic character she created.